


What We Leave Behind

by coolpointsetta



Category: Transformers Prime
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:54:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24524188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coolpointsetta/pseuds/coolpointsetta
Summary: "If…if Breakdown was…" Knock Out couldn't even say it. "…he would still be where she attacked him.""Breakdown /is/-""Shut up," Knock Out said first, and surprisingly, Dreadwing did.
Relationships: Breakdown/Knock Out
Comments: 10
Kudos: 59





	What We Leave Behind

**Author's Note:**

> During quarantine I started re watching TFP, and I noticed how they barely showed Knock Out grieving at all, or how he found out about Breakdown's death; he was only mentioned in passing a few times afterwards. So I decided to make a fic about it :)

"Come on, come on!" 

"You can't beat me, Knock Out, just give in already!" 

Knock Out could think of no witty comeback to that one, so he settled for sticking his glossa out at his big blue friend and returning his focus to their arm wrestling competition. 

Breakdown had challenged Knock Out to an arm wrestling competition weeks ago after Knock Out claimed he could easily beat the big lug. However, they had been so busy with the Autobots constantly stirring up trouble or Megatron always needing them for something; they never seemed to have time to just sit down and arm wrestle. 

But luckily for them, Breakdown had been relieved from patrol and Knock Out had no patients to tend to, so here they were, a little buzzed on Knock Out's private stash of high grade, on the last round of their arm wrestling competition. 

It was tied up, but Breakdown was going to jump off the back of the ship if he allowed himself to loose to Knock Out. 

"Breakdown," A voice said, but it went mostly unregistered as the two Cons continued, Breakdown getting a small upper hand as he began to push down on Knock Out's arm. Knock Out's red optics went wide and he struggled to push back, but he was definitely losing now.

"Breakdown!" The voice said, louder this time, and Breakdown's concentration was broken as he turned and saw someone in the doorway. Knock Out, however, seized the opportunity and pushed down hard on Breakdown's arm, slamming the back of his palm down on the table. Breakdown imminently turned back, outrage in his optic but a large grin on his face. 

"That's cheating!" Breakdown protested angrily, pointing a digit at his partner accusingly. Knock Out merely threw his arms up in celebration, a large grin on his face plates. 

"Well if you don't count that, then I don't count the win you got after you kissed me and then took advantage of my surprise," Knock Out argued, crossing his arms and raising an optic ridge. Breakdown's good optic narrowed in a sneer but he said nothing. 

He looked back to the mech in the doorway, the smile fading only slightly from his face plates. 

"What's the problem, Dreadwing?" Breakdown asked, and the Seeker's optics narrowed. 

"Lord Megatron requested that you accompany myself and a few others to scout for a highly important mission." Dreadwing said, and Breakdown tilted his head. Knock Out's gut curled with the feeling that something wasn't being said, and Dreadwing elaborated. 

"I will fill you on our main objective on the way." The bigger Decepticon's optics turned to look at Knock Out. "I apologize, but you are not to know the nature of this mission." 

Breakdown cast him a sympathetic glance, and Knock Out shrugged. "Whatever. Clearly whatever you plan to do requires muscle, an I am the first to admit I don't have much of that." The red medic said, waving off Breakdown's attempt to comfort him. 

Dreadwing gave a small nod before he looked back up to Breakdown. "We depart whenever you are ready, Breakdown. I will be waiting outside to brief you on our objective." Dreadwing said, before he turned and walked out of the doorway, the metal closing automatically behind him. 

Breakdown turned back to Knock Out, grabbing his servos in his own. "Sorry our little date night got interrupted." Breakdown said apologetically. Knock Out smirked. "Rematch when I get back?" 

Knock Out chuckled. "If you can handle losing again." The medic smirked, looking up at his lover. "And don't worry about it, beside, I needed a waxing anyway." Knock Out smiled. He cast a quick glance over Breakdown's shoulder. "You be careful, okay?" 

Breakdown smiled and kissed Knock Out's forehead. "Careful's my middle name." Knock Out gave him his classic 'bullshit' look. 

"No it isn't," Knock Out tilted himself up on his toes and gave Breakdown a quick peck on the lips. "now go do this top secret mission of yours and hurry back, I'm going to need help with my post-wax buffing session." Breakdown leaned back down and stole another kiss, his field warm and happy against Knock Out's. "You big oaf." 

Breakdown's good optic brightened at the tone of voice Knock Out used; Knock Out was never affectionate with anyone, barely even Breakdown sometimes. So whenever Knock Out was feeling particularly affectionate, he took what he could get. "I love you too. To Cybertron and back." 

The big blue mech pulled away then, not looking back as the door slid open for him, and his loud footsteps faded to nothing the farther away he got. 

Knock Out gave a fond smile before he turned to grab his wax kit. 

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Knock Out allowed a small smile come to his face plates as he started to hum an Earth tune to himself as he finished wiping off the excess oil from his oil bath. Before he had started his waxing, he had decided to take an oil bath, and he had intended to keep it warm for Breakdown when he came back, but the big lug had been gone a few hours already, and the oil was starting to get cold. 

Whatever, Breakdown could have another oil bath later, after he helped Knock Out wax himself, of course. 

"I have confidence in sunshine, I have confidence in rain." Knock Out sang quietly, not noticing the doorway to his private chambers opening and closing automatically. "I have confidence that spring will come again, besides which you see I have confidence in me." Knock Out had secretly began watching Earth movies in his spare time with some of the crew as well, and he wasn't ashamed to admit that "The Sound of Music" was one of his favorites. 

"Knock Out…" 

Knock Out nearly jumped out of his plating as he whirled around, his right servo turning into a rotating blade instinctively. He rolled his optics and breathed a dramatic sigh of relief as he saw it was only Dreadwing. 

He didn't take the proper time to look at the mech as he placed a servo over his spark and let out another sigh, sinking down to sit on the edge of the tub, his blade shifting back to his servo. "Primus, Dreadwing, you scared me half to death." 

Knock Out missed how Dreadwing flinched at the choice of words, but said nothing. Knock Out looked up at the stoic mech, the feelings of shame and tiredness seeping into the room. He was surprised he didn't feel it sooner. 

Dreadwing had definitely seen better days; for example, this morning. His plating was chipped and scratched in places it hadn't been when he had arrived earlier to pick up Breakdown (Knock Out knew where all the scratches on Dreadwing's armor were, he was honestly a little jealous of the mech's amazing finish) and his optics were dim and cast on the ground. 

If Knock Out looked a little closer, he could see silver webbing on the edges of Dreadwing's plating, still caught in some of the grooves of his armor. 

Knock Out sprang up, immediately walking over to the Seeker even as he tried to back away. He grabbed onto one of Dreadwing's servos, and upon further inspection, saw more of Arachnid's silver webbing underneath his claws. Knock Out looked up, but Dreadwing was still avoiding his gaze. 

"Did Arachnid attack you?" Knock Out asked, his tone dark and serious. 

Dreadwing still didn't look at him. 

"Dreadwing, did Arachnid attack you?" Knock Out asked again, before looking past the larger blue mech. Someone was missing. "Where's Breakdown?" 

Knock Out didn't miss the flinch this time. "She uncovered the truth about our plans." Dreadwing said weakly. "Megatron ordered her to be exterminated, and she interpreted our next move." Dreadwing's voice was thick with shame, and Knock Out could hear him resetting his voice box as he struggled to speak. 

The brave, fearless Dreadwing, was struggling to speak. 

Knock Out dropped Dreadwing's servo, taking a few steps back. "No," He said, already knowing where this was going. "no, no." 

Dreadwing fell back onto a spare crate that had been behind him as Knock Out continued to back away. 

Horror, disgust and pure anguish filled the room the more Knock Out spiraled. 

"She goaded on Breakdown after she trapped me in her webbing, I tried to convince him not to fight her, but he was sure he could handle her. He injured her and followed her trail." Dreadwing continued. 

"Dreadwing, shut up." Knock Out spat out, kneeling down and placing his servos around his audio receptors. Everything felt so wrong all of a sudden. Their shared wash racks, the waxing kit, the bath, their shared berth in the next room, it all felt so foreign and wrong. "Stop talking." 

"He screamed a while later, I tried to contact him, but there was no response. After I freed myself I tried to find him, but I could not find him anywhere." Dreadwing said slowly as he recalled the later events of the night. "No one could find him…" 

"No, that's not right," Knock Out said, looking up to glare at Knock Out. "Arachnid always leaves her victims where she killed them, always. If…if Breakdown was…" Knock Out couldn't even say it. "…he would still be where she attacked him." 

"Breakdown is-" 

"Shut up," Knock Out said first, and surprisingly, Dreadwing did. Knock Out began to pace, turning so sharply on his heel there was a screech against the floor. He suddenly stopped, turning to look at Dreadwing again. The Seeker was still not looking up at him, his gaze firmly planted on the ground. 

"Just tell me that the glitch is dead." 

Dreadwing said nothing, merely looked at a new spot on the floor and curled in on himself a little more. Dreadwing, the Con who tortured and killed thousands of Autobots during the Great War, the Con who was afraid of nothing, was afraid to look Knock Out in the optics right now. 

Knock Out let out a noise that was half laugh, half sob. He looked at the ceiling, blinking back tears from his optics. 

"This has got to be some sort of sick joke, isn't it? Did Breakdown put you up to this?" Knock Out scoffed, another short laugh escaping him. It was filled with venom and a sickness that curled Dreadwing's spark. 

"Breakdown is probably just being held by MECH, or Arachnid is holding ransom for him," Knock Out theorized, hope blooming in his chest. 

Misplaced, always misplaced hopes when it came to Knock Out. 

Dreadwing forced himself to stand and look up, his optics meeting Knock Out's for the first time. "Knock Out, Breakdown's signal is offline. Gone." Dreadwing said as he took a few shaky steps towards Knock Out, and the medic didn't pull away. "Breakdown is-" 

"Don't…" Knock Out said, not pushing Dreadwing's servos off of his arms when they came to rest there. Knock Out forced himself to look up and meet Dreadwing's gaze, hoping still to see some indication that he was lying. "Dreadwing, please tell me Breakdown is okay…he wouldn't leave me…" 

Dreadwing moved his arms up to wrap around Knock Out in a strange hug, their fields mixing together. Knock Out could sense the anger and fear in his own, and in Dreadwing's he felt comfort and sadness, but underneath those thick layers was pity and shame and hatred. 

Knock Out began to claw at Dreadwing's cockpit, not caring as he drew energon in his attempt to pull away. Dreadwing held on tight, lifting his chin up and over Knock Out's head. 

"I am sorry, Knock Out," Dreadwing sounded strangely genuine as he spoke. "but Breakdown is dead." 

Something clicked at those words, and instead of pushing away from Dreadwing, Knock Out began clinging to him, the blue mech the only thing keeping Knock Out from sinking to the floor. Knock Out let out a wail and the tears flowed freely from his optics as he desperately grabbed onto Dreadwing's plating. 

Slowly, the two of them slumped to the floor, Knock Out's face buried in Dreadwing's chest as he sobbed uncontrollably; Dreadwing rubbing his servos up and down the medic's back as he blinked back his own tears. It wasn't his place to cry, he didn't just loose a lover. 

"Breakdown wouldn't leave me…he wouldn't, Dreadwing, he wouldn't…" Knock Out hiccuped. 

Dreadwing reset his voice box but couldn't find the words to comfort Knock Out. There weren't any that could be said. 

"Breakdown wouldn't leave me…he can't be dead, he can't be…" Knock Out whimpered. "He promised to be careful, he said he would come home…" 

"I am sorry Knock Out," Dreadwing whispered back. "I am so sorry this happened." 

And that became his mantra of the night, whispering quietly to Knock Out before the medic fell into an uneasy recharge in his arms, the tears still on his face.


End file.
